The Ghanaian President, Mr. John Mahama, has said that Ghana plans to export thousands of megawatts of electricity to Nigeria. He said the plan also includes Ivory Coast and other neighbouring countries with power insufficiency.
Mahama made this known at the Africa Global Business and Economic Forum in Dubai on Wednesday. He said his government had made huge investments in power generation that would enable the country to export excess electricity to Nigeria and others.
“We have given priority to electricity generation in our country. We have prioritised energy in such a way that we want to become the hub for power production in West Africa. We want to generate electricity to the point that excess power can be exported to Nigeria, Ivory Coast and other countries that have power deficit,” he said.
To achieve this dream, Mahama said his country had secured export-import financing from China as well as special funds from Abu Dhabi to commence series of power generation projects, adding that a third hydropower dam project was already at an advanced stage.
The Ghanaian leader spoke in a panel discussion along with President Paul Kagame of Rwanda and President Mulatu Wirtu of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
“Where Africa faces some of its challenges lies its biggest opportunities. We are leveraging on public-private sector partnership to build infrastructure. Be it roads, electricity, ports or communication systems; if we create the right environment, investors will come.
“Creating the right environment that will attract foreign direct investment is key.”
